The strategic management leadership performed by the NBA head coaches is now equal to multiple players’ salaries as the league generates escalating global success. Top NBA coaches in 2025 receive more than $126 million every year from their base salaries while earning all this together as the top ten in the league. The rising commercial influence of the NBA and its unmatchable strategic significance in modern high-competition leagues have caused these substantial increases in head coach compensation.
1. Steve Kerr – $17.5 Million
As the top NBA coach, Steve Kerr leads the salary charts by receiving $17.5 million per year. Beginning his role in 2014 as Golden State Warriors head coach, Kerr revolutionized the league during a notable basketball period. Under his leadership, the Golden State Warriors achieved multiple championship victories while Steve Kerr maintained six Finals appearances and created a coaching history as successful as his previous professional basketball achievements, which included five NBA victories. Through his leadership, the Warriors have achieved the NBA’s highest franchise value, surpassing $9 billion, while becoming their most valuable team.
2. Gregg Popovich – $17 Million
Gregg Popovich stands among Kerr as the celebrated San Antonio Spurs coach who collects $17 million yearly. Popovich maintains his position as the most veteran coach across all U.S. major sports by leading the San Antonio Spurs since 1996. The basketball world recognizes him as a wise leader because his career achievements amount to five NBA titles and more than 1,400 victories. Popovich fights on as an influential coach and training mentor for future basketball minds even after experiencing a minor stroke in late 2024.
3. Erik Spoelstra – $15 Million
Erik Spoelstra stands at number three on the earning scale with an annual payment of $15 million when he serves as the Miami Heat’s head coach. The NBA recognizes Spoelstra today as a respected tactician after he started as a video coordinator in 1995 because of his thorough understanding of basketball. The Heat Organization entrusted Spoelstra with its longest and most valuable nationwide sports coaching contract worth $120 million over eight years.
4. Tyronn Lue – $15 Million
Tyronn Lue, who serves as head coach for the Los Angeles Clippers, shares the $15 million annual salary with Erik Spoelstra. Under Lue’s leadership, the Cleveland Cavaliers achieved their first NBA Championship in 2016. The Clippers hired Lue in 202,0 and he has made major changes to their playoff progress, leading the team to their initial Western Conference Finals appearance. Her present five-year extension confirms her position as one of the premier smart coaches in professional basketball.
5. Michael Malone – $12 Million
The 2023 NBA champion Denver Nuggets receive their playoff guidelines from head coach Michael Malone, who receives an annual salary of $12 million. The coach who assumed his position in 2015 has built both championship trophies while designing one of the NBA’s best synchronized and strategically effective rosters. The combination of discipline with player empowerment under Malone has led the Nuggets to stay as one of the top Western Conference teams.
6. Doc Rivers – $11 Million
Under the Milwaukee Bucks organization, Doc Rivers collects an annual salary of $11 million. Rivers, who spent 26 seasons coaching in the NBA during his career, decided to come back to his coaching responsibilities after a short career as a broadcaster in 2024. Rivers gained fame after leading the Boston Celtics to victory in 2008 while maintaining three decades of locker room leadership, together with high levels of accountability and respect.
7. Tom Thibodeau – $11 Million
Tom Thibodeau secured $11 million in annual compensation during his tenure with the Knicks since his hire in 2024. As the current New York Knicks head coach, Thibodeau has accumulated two Coach of the Year awards and gained fame for upgrading struggling teams into postseason contenders. The New York Knicks gave him extended commitments as they support his organizational framework for the long term.
8. Mike Budenholzer – $10 Million
Mike Budenholzer, now coaching the Phoenix Suns, takes in $10 million annually. The 2021 NBA Championship victory of the Milwaukee Bucks brought fame to Budenholzer when he joined the Suns to coach their talented roster in 2024. The defensive genius and successful leadership track record that Thibodeau displayed in both Atlanta and Milwaukee make Phoenix optimistic that he can replicate his approach in the desert.
9. Rick Carlisle – $9 Million
Players of the Indiana Pacers receive $9 million a year from Rick Carlisle as he extends his renowned coaching career. Carlisle started coaching the Pacers in 2008 and returned to continue his role after a brief absence, which made him join an exclusive group of coaches who have taken home an NBA championship both on the player and coaching sides. The league recognizes Carlisle as a veteran leader in modern tactical strategies due to his high career win totals in the history books.
10. (Tie) Jason Kidd and Nick Nurse – $8.5 Million
At the tenth positions of the coach salary rankings sit Jason Kidd and Nick Nurse, who share an annual total of $8.5 million each. The Hall of Fame point guard Jason Kidd continues serving as the Dallas Mavericks’ head coach while obtaining a new extended contract after the Western Conference championship victory. Since leading the Toronto Raptors to their championship in 2019, Nurse has maintained his position as a coaching innovator. Since taking the Philadelphia 76ers head coach role, Nurse continues to deliver versatile strategies and offensive play ideas that attract teams in the league.
The Broader Picture of NBA Coaching Wealth
Professional basketball has experienced an economic transformation that has led to astronomical coaching salaries. The basketball coaching market underwent a transformative shift so that the number of coaches receiving over $10 million per year has grown from one to more than half of the top-paid coaches. The majority of coaching roles come with secure employment arrangements along with uncommon compensation packages, which provide stability against common trends in other sectors, even though coaches bear the most blame when teams perform poorly.
The coaches led by Kerr implement championship blueprints, while Popovich teaches discipline, and Spoelstra develops innovative leadership styles that operate similarly to billion-dollar franchise managers. The earnings for the coaches in 2025 demonstrate society’s growing appreciation of their fundamental position in NBA operations.
